Local Luminary: Brian Shapiro

by Christina Kaminski, October 27, 2008

In 1984, a young activist named Brian Shapiro brought President Reagan to a graceless halt in the middle of a speech in Hackensack, New Jersey. He and other members of the punk band Crass, were chanting lyrics from one of the group’s songs: “Fight war, not wars.” Ten years later, Shapiro came to Woodstock hoping to better engage himself in animal rights, social justice, and environmental issues. “If there ever was a right move,” he says, “I made that right move in coming up here.” Among other pursuits, Shapiro has hosted a cable access television show, sued the federal government over its chosen location (wetlands, floodplain) for the Woodstock Post Office, worked for the Kingston Library, and taught preschool. In September, the county legislator (D-Woodstock) was tapped for the executive director position at the Ulster County SPCA, where he had previously volunteered. From cats to cockatiels, the UCSPCA currently houses roughly 200 animals, the majority of whom await adoption.

On a recent afternoon at the no-kill shelter, after showing off the enthusiasm of a quartet of bouncing Labrador puppies and moderating a brief dispute over alphahood in one of the cat rooms, Shapiro pauses in front of what used to be a giant freezer for euthanized animals and explains his plans for creating more usable space in the facility. He also hopes to build improved partnerships with other sanctuaries and humane associations so that he can accommodate his furry clients as well as possible; it is the first time in at least four years that the SPCA will be led by someone with advocacy experience.


What kind of attitude do you need to wear so many hats with such ease?
I think it’s just how I was raised. I had parents who were products of the Sixties, and I myself am a Seventies kid, so we had a specific understanding about the importance of being active in the community. I grew up with a very strong sense of DIY, “do-it-yourself,” whether that meant putting together your own fanzine with your thoughts on music or artwork on sloppily Xeroxed pieces of paper, or learning three chords on a guitar and getting some people with weird haircuts together to start a band—it was all about DIY. I used to be an illustrator, a disc jockey, and a bass player; I continue to be a very creative and artistic person, but one of the challenges of being so involved in the community is that I have to find— through working with the environment, animals, ethics, and public service—outlets for things like creativity and a sense of humor, because literally every moment is accounted for. I used to argue about the laws, now I’m helping to create and change them; I used to argue about animal cruelty, now I have the tools to prevent it. But I’m still mad that I can’t play in a band anymore. I was in some good bands.